Friday, 8th January, 2016 7:56am Story by Pat O'Rourke - See more at: http://www.dublinpeople.com/news/northsideeast/articles/2016/01/08/4111802-defibrillator-is-donated-to-community-first-responders/#sthash.EFDpTFHB.dpuf
Pictured are members of the Community First Responders scheme in Raheny, Liz Donnelly, Joe Mooney and Ronan Kelly with James Finnegan, Bank of Ireland (second, left).
BANK of Ireland recently donated a defibrillator to the Community First Responders (CFR) scheme in Raheny.
It was part of a commitment by BOI to donate 14 defibrillators to CFR schemes nationwide in 2015, following on from a successful programme in 2014 where 10 defibrillators were donated around the country.
The 2015 donation was made as part of Bank of Ireland’s, ‘Be at Your Best’ programme where staff hosted a number of fundraising activities including a ‘Couch to 5k Run’, a trek in the Dublin Mountains, and various other health related activities aimed at enhancing the fitness and wellbeing of its staff.
Across the different events thousands of employees took part. Arising from the fundraising success, the bank made the decision to continue its support of the Community First Responders schemes in 2015, given the valuable, life-saving role played by CFR trained volunteers with access to defibrillators in their local communities.
Defibrillators are small devices that are placed on the chest or abdomen and use electrical pulses or shocks to help control life-threatening arrhythmias, especially those that can cause sudden cardiac arrest.
CFR schemes are community groups who are working in conjunction with the National Ambulance service as a first response unit for 999 calls for cardiac instances in the area.
Bank of Ireland’s donation will allow communities who have set up a CFR scheme, trained volunteers, and purchased uniforms to get the scheme up and running.
Working in conjunction with the National Ambulance Service, CFR schemes are tasked with the ultimate goal of saving lives.
Ellen Byrne, branch manager at Bank of Ireland Raheny, said they were delighted to get involved in the initiative.
“It not only created a greater awareness among our staff of how simply a life can be saved but also gave us a chance to give something back to the community who support us constantly in our business and help them provide such an
essential service,” said Ms Byrne.
Malahide is among the other areas to have benefited from the defibrillator donations.
Joe Mooney, from CFR Raheny, said: “Having a defibrillator for our CFR group in Raheny enhances the ability of our team to make a real difference when called upon by the National Ambulance Service.
“We are extremely grateful to the staff of Bank of Ireland for their support.”